Acquitted

Finally, the historic impeachment crisis of William Jefferson Clinton is history, and many people want it to stay that way.

Whether they wanted him impeached, censured or just left the heck alone, most South Floridians interviewed on Friday did not see the vote to acquit President Clinton as a defining moment in their lives. Even fewer seemed to pause from their daily routines -- work, leisure or lunch -- to focus on the once-in-a-century event.

What could have been the toppling of a president may not even be a generational touchstone for many people. No one seemed to mark it as an event to compete with the Kennedy assassination, Watergate, John Lennon's murder, the Challenger explosion or even the O.J. Simpson verdict. A year from now, many people may be struggling to recall where they were Friday at noon.

It's history now, and they just want to forget it.

"Is this an end to it, and can we now get on with life?" asked Debbie Bainton of Deerfield Beach. "That's how I feel, and I am just an average person, and I know other people feel the same way. It never should have happened."

Now that it's over, Nancy Deswysen wants to see Clinton and Congress turn their full attention to problems closer to her home, like health care and Social Security. She says the president should concentrate on education, child care and other issues he discussed in the State of the Union speech.

"That's what I will always remember him for," said Deswysen, 51, a Coral Springs resident who manages a medical supply distribution company. "In spite of his personal recklessness, he is able to communicate as an effective leader. I think he should have been spanked, but I don't think he should have been impeached."

Spanking probably would have been unconstitutional, but Ashley Sybesma would not have minded if Clinton had resigned. Sybesma, 19, a political science major at Florida Atlantic University, was disillusioned both by Clinton's behavior and Congress' handling of the whole crisis.

"It's one thing to lie," said Sybesma, a Delray Beach resident and Republican. "It's another thing to lie under oath. It has come down to party lines. I think both sides are at fault. It shouldn't have been a party issue.

"The process proved that no matter how our government works, it never goes how it's supposed to."

What was most stunning, said many residents, was that such a sordid affair could take up so much of the nation's time. It wasn't about to take up much of their time.

Daniel Simmons heard the news about Clinton's fate as he made his way to the Winn-Dixie Marketplace on Sunrise Boulevard. He responded with a broad smile.

"The Republicans were as wrong as a left shoe on a right foot," said Simmons, of Fort Lauderdale. " Clinton] did not put our country in jeopardy. This whole trial was a mistake."

Another shopper, Sherl Johnson, agreed.

"I am glad it's over with. I'm glad he's staying in office," said Johnson, 29, of Fort Lauderdale. "The Republicans were just out to get him. I'm glad they lost."

Marie DeAngelis said she stopped watching the impeachment reports on television months ago.

"I chose to ignore it all," said DeAngelis, 41, of Hollywood. "It was idiotic. It wasn't relevant. Thank God it's over. It was a waste of everybody's time."

Beverly and Clare Mock also were glad to hear that the congressional drama was over - even though they do not believe President Clinton was guilt-free.

"If it were you or me, of course, we would be thrown in jail for sure," said Beverly Mock, 67, of Hollywood, referring to the charge that the president lied under oath. "He's been a bad boy. But you know men do this all the time."

Her husband, Clare Mock, a registered Republican, just wanted the trial over because he didn't think the charges weren't important enough for impeachment.

Such sentiments aren't hard to come by in South Florida, which as a region helped Clinton win the state's electoral votes in the 1996 election. GOP president candidate Bob Dole won the rest of the state by a 76,000-vote margin, but traditionally liberal voters from Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties gave the president a 379,000-vote lead in South Florida.

"Everybody's happy about this but me," lamented Tamarac retiree Anthony Aspromonte. "I think something had to be done to him."

Aspromonte, 73, who described himself a "conservative first, a Republican second," said he would be voting independent in the next election.

" The Republicans] don't have any spine," Aspromonte said Wednesday at the Tamarac post office branch. "If you have no conscience, you have nothing."

But Phuong Le, a North Lauderdale Republican, said he would probably stick with his party in the next election.

"I don't think this was a waste of time -- Clinton] got caught with his pants down," said Le, 29, who was standing at the Tamarac post office. "I think Republicans] just caved to public pressure."